Karl Harris
| Karl 'Bomber' Harris | |
|---|---|
Harris in 2008 with the factory Rob Mac Yamaha British Superbike
|
|
| Nationality | British |
| Born |
21 October 1979 Sheffield, South Yorkshire |
| Died | 3 June 2014 (aged 34) Isle of Man |
Karl Harris (21 October 1979 – 3 June 2014) was a three-time British Supersport champion. In 2010 he switched to the British Superstock Championship on a GR Motorsport Aprilia. Harris was killed when racing during the 2014 Isle of Man TT.
Harris started his career in 1996, moving through the junior ranks to race in the European Superstock Championship, winning the title on the Suzuki GSX-R750, as well as taking in some rounds of World Supersport in 1999, with a best result of 4th. He returned to the UK in 2001, racing a Suzuki in the British Supersport Championship, which he won. He then graduated to Superbike racing in 2002 on a Suzuki, but this was not a successful season. In 2003 and 2004, he again raced in Supersport for HM Plant Honda, winning the title in both years.
For 2005 Harris returned to BSB with a Honda run from their UK factory in Swindon, finishing 9th overall with a best result of 3rd.
He moved to the main HRC Honda team alongside Ryuichi Kiyonari for 2006, taking a 2nd place at Oulton Park, less than 0.1 seconds behind race winner Gregorio Lavilla. A crash in the first race at Snetterton caused him to miss the second, although he was not seriously injured. He took his first pole position at Oulton Park that year. He came close to his first series win in the second race at Croft in the wet, passed by Leon Haslam with half a lap to go. While Kiyonari won the title, Harris finished fifth overall, behind the semi-works bike of Jonathan Rea, who replaced him in the factory team for 2007.
He switched to the Hydrex Honda for 2007, with a best result in the first half of the season a 6th place, again showing good pace at Oulton Park. He scored an emotional second place in the second round at Oulton Park in August.
...
Wikipedia